Edgar Wright To Direct Adaptation Of Simon Stephenson’s Android Love Story SET MY HEART TO FIVE

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Edgar Wright (Baby Driver, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World) is attached to direct an adaptation of the upcoming novel Set My Heart to Five from Let Not the Waves of the Sea writer Simon Stephenson. The project is in development by Working Title and Focus Features.

Described as a “robot love story,” the novel has quite a synopsis. Set in 2054, it focuses on Jared, “an android that works as a dentist, as he undergoes an emotional awakening that is sparked by an introduction to ’80s and ’90s movies. He then embarks on a quest to convince humans that he and his kind should be permitted to feel. It’s a quest that leads to an unforgettable adventure across the West Coast of America, determined to meet to programmer that created him and write a film script that will change the world.”

It’s certainly an original-sounding premise, and should be right up Wright’s alley.

The fan-favorite filmmaker was set to direct Marvel’s Ant-Man at one point before stepping away due to creative differences. He was replaced by Peyton Reed. Wright also has a sequel to Baby Driver lined up for Sony’s TriStar.

What do you guys make of this news? Drop us a comment in the usual place.

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STARGIRL Posters And Stills Provide A First Look At Some Of Courtney Whitmore’s Superhero Allies

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The CW and DC Universe have both released separate poster for Stargirl. The former gives us a new look at Courtney Whitmore (Brec Bassinger) suited-up as the teenage hero, while the streaming service’s version spotlights some of her supporting characters.

It looks like Stargirl is going to be joining forces with some younger incarnations of the Golden Age Justice Society or America – the team her father Starman led back in the day. Here we see Anjelika Washington as Beth Chapel, aka Doctor Mid-Nite, Yvette Monreal as Yolanda Montez, aka Wildcat, and Cameron Gellman as Rick Tyler, aka Hourman.

The bottom half of the poster also features members of the villainous Injustice Society: Joy Osmanski as Paula Brooks/Tigress, Christopher James Baker as Dr. Henry King/Brainwave, Neil Jackson as Jordan Mahkent/Icicle, Nelson Lee as Dr. Ito/Dragon King, and Neil Hopkins as Crock/Sportsmaster.

In addition, we have some promo stills from the pilot episode. They’re not very revealing, and focus on Courtney and her family.

We recently found out that Stargirl had been delayed, but only by a week. The show will now hit DC Universe on Monday, May 18th, and make its broadcast TV debut on The CW the following day, Tuesday, May 19th, at 8/7c.

Do you guys plan on giving Stargirl a shot? Let us know in the comments.

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MORBIUS, GHOSTBUSTER: AFTERLIFE And UNCHARTED Have All Been Pushed Back By Sony Pictures

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We knew this was inevitable in the wake of the current coronavirus pandemic, and Sony Pictures has now announced that three of its upcoming tentpole releases have been pushed back. Unlike Marvel’s Black Widow, however, we do know when these movies will hit theaters.

Originally scheduled for July 30, Spider-Man spinoff Morbius, the Living Vampire will now bow on March 19, 2021, while Ghostbusters: Afterlife is moving from its July 10 release to March 5, 2021. That date had been reserved for video game adaptation Uncharted, which has been shifted to October 8, 2021 – moving the untitled Sony Marvel movie that was previously in that spot into undated status.

In addition, Peter Rabbit 2 has been moved from August 2020 to January 15, 2021.

Studios are clearly taking no chances, and want to be certain that theaters will be reopened by the time they debut their biggest movies. What they may not be accounting for, though, is moviegoers being reluctant to venture out to see those movies. China recently had to re-close over 500 theaters after hardly anyone showed up, and the same thing could very easily happen in the U.S. and Europe.

At this point, we just have to hope that August’s Wonder Woman 1984 isn’t pushed back even further to 2021.

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SPIDER-MAN 3 Reportedly Adds Academy Award-Nominated AVENGERS Cinematographer Seamus McGarvey

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Academy Award-nominated cinematographer Seamus McGarvey is reportedly set to return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe to led his considerable talents behind the camera to Sony’s Spider-Man franchise.

According to Discussing Film, McGarvey has signed on to lens the still untitled follow-up to Spider-Man: Far From Home, which will once again be directed by Jon Watts. The Irish cinematographer previously worked on Joss Whedon’s Avengers and the post-credits scene of the first Thor movie, as well as Godzilla, Bad Times At The El Royale, Fifty Shades Of Grey, The Accountant, Nocturnal Animals, and more.

Spider-Man 3 was scheduled to commence production this July, but given the current climate, it seems highly unlikely that cameras will begin rolling that soon. The movie is still set for its July 16, 2021 release date (for now).

Tom Holland will reprise the role of Peter Parker, and Zendaya has been confirmed to return as MJ. No other cast members have been officially announced, but it’s assumed that the supporting characters from the previous movies (Peter’s school mates, Aunt May etc) will also be back. The villain is a mystery, but rumors suggest Kraven the Hunter could make his big-screen debut ahead of his own solo outing.

What do you guys make of this news? Drop us a comment in the usual place, and check out our ranking of all previous big-screen outings for the Webhead from worst to best below. Yes, TASM 2 is up first!
 

Simply click the next button below!

 

The Amazing Spider-Man 2

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Marc Webb’s TASM sequel really is a mess. While the first movie definitely has its share of problems, the follow-up basically took all of the elements that didn’t work – annoying, “cool” Peter, overstuffed plot, awful villains – and amplified them.

To be fair, leads Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone do their best with the material and Gwen’s demise is well handled, but by that point we’ve already sat through over 2 hours of increasing silliness, cliched romance and Jamie Fox’s Electro.

Spider-Man 3

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Many of you were probably expecting this to take worst place, but Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 3 is not quite as bad as its reputation suggests.

Sure, it’s tonally all over the place Topher Grace’s Venom is… not very good, but Kirsten Dunst gives arguably her best performance of the trilogy as MJ, and there are some well executed action sequences.

Then there’s the dancing. Okay, there’s no defending the dancing.

The Amazing Spider-Man

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Sony and Marc Webb’s first Spider-Man reboot is technically a well made film and Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone make for likable enough leads, but it’s basically a complete rehash of Raimi’s first movie – and it falls way short.

Peter Parker being re-imagined as a cool skateboarder kid would have been forgivable if the script took a few chances and skipped over the origin story, but at the end of the day it’s a copy-and-paste job with a subplot involving Peter’s parents that goes nowhere, and a truly horrendous looking villain.

Not bad, but not quite good enough to justify its existence.

Spider-Man: Far From Home

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I know I’m going to be in the minority on this one, but I thought Far From Home was just okay, and I left the theater quite disappointed. It’s a fun movie for the most part and Tom Holland once again does a stellar job as Peter Parker, but I was never fully engaged with the story.

It’s basically a high-school romance with some superhero stuff thrown in, and that’s fine… to an extent. A couple of scenes with Peter and MJ awkwardly flirting is endearing, but it soon becomes a little tedious – even if the actors do have strong chemistry.

Unfortunately, the action sequences are also very repetitive with continuous shots of Spidey swinging around giant CGI monsters as they destroy a few buildings. We’re told that these Elementals represent a major threat to the world, but that never comes across and the movie, in general, lacks bite. The final set piece is undeniably impressive, however.

Perhaps my biggest gripe with the film is that it feels like a step backwards for Spider-Man. Or a step to the side, at least. After having fought alongside The Avengers, stopped The Vulture and helped defeat Thanos and reverse The Snap (sorry, “The Blip”), this movie takes a still ridiculously inept Parker right back to the beginning and basically repeats his Homecoming arc to the letter.

I’m a big Spider-Man fan, I guess I’ve just had enough of Spider-Boy at this stage.

Spider-Man: Homecoming

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This second reboot fully integrated Spider-Man into The MCU, taking the character back to basics for a light-hearted, John Hughes-inspired high-school adventure that doesn’t quite reach the heights of Raimi’s first two films, but comes pretty damn close.

Tom Holland is terrific as a younger take on Peter Parker, and he’s bolstered by a strong supporting cast that includes Zendaya, Maria Tomei and Michael Keaton. Robert Downey Jr’s extended cameo as Tony Stark came in for some backlash, but there’s no denying that his presence gives this latest Spidey flick a much-needed injection of originality – as does the decision to dispense with Peter’s origin story.

A little more edge wouldn’t have been unwelcome, however.

Spider-Man

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X-Men is widely credited with rejuvenating the CBM genre, but the success of Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man most definitely ensured its longevity.

The Evil Dead director brings all of the requisite blockbuster thrills while maintaining some of the pulpy charm of his earlier films to deliver what is widely considered to be one of the best comic book adaptations of all time.

There are a few issues (as great as Willem Dafoe is, that Green Goblin suit just does not work), but for the most part, Spider-Man is about as great a big-screen debut for Marvel’s web-slinging hero as one could have hoped for.

Spider-Man 2

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What can be said about Raimi’s Spidey sequel that hasn’t been already? Some still believe the original to be superior, but for me Spider-Man 2 is smarter, funnier, more emotional, more exciting and features more nuanced performances from Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst.

Alfred Molina also makes for a terrific Doc Ock, and is involved in two of the movies standout sequences: the deliriously dark operating table massacre, and that train fight people tend to bring up once in a while.

Flaws? Well, Maguire does pull that weird face while stopping the train…

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse

When I first saw Sony’s superb Into The Spider-Verse I placed it below Spider-Man 2 in my rankings, but after a second watch it just edges it out as the best Spidey flick yet.

This first big-screen outing for Miles Morales is not only a hugely entertaining and stunningly animated adventure, but it plays with the usual tropes associated with comic book movies in some surprising ways, and even succeeds in breathing new life into the well-worn superhero origin story. It’s so damn good that any gripes I may have (okay, so it could have used a better villain) seem like minor, almost insignificant nitpicks.

Spectacular, amazing, astonishing – whatever Spidey-related adjective you choose, it’ll fit.

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SUPERGIRL, THE FLASH, BATWOMAN & LEGENDS OF TOMORROW Season Return Dates Set By The CW

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After a week of uncertainty, The CW has finally revealed when its most popular series, including several DC TV favorites, will resume airing their respective seasons.

The Flash and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow will both return with new episodes at their usual times on Tuesday, April 21, while Batwoman and Supergirl will return a few days later on Sunday, April 26. 

While Legends of Tomorrow had already completed work on its fifth season (and will presumably be able to air all seven remaining episodes, finishing its current season), production on The Flash season six, Supergirl season five and Batwoman season one were all halted due to the worldwide coronavirus pandemic. It now remains to be seen whether the cast and crew will actually be able to get back to work on completing the current seasons or if the finales will be pushed to the fall.

In Supergirl‘s case, the show’s future status is even more uncertain as series star Melissa Benoist recently announced her first pregnancy and was expected to take extended time off this summer when the series normally begins production on a new season. To accommodate her delivery timeline, The CW was slated to begin production on Supergirl season six in just a few short weeks, in an effort to bank a few episodes before Benoist went on maternity leave.

As for the rest of their lineup, Nancy Drew will return on Wednesday, April 8, Riverdale will return Wednesday, April 15, and Katy Keene will return on Thursday, April 16.

Unfortunately, the final season of Supernatural and Legacies season two will both remain sidelined for now. Supernatural aired its final completed episode last week and, despite shooting up to episode 18, will be unable to air any further installments due to unfinished visual and sound effects. The show was filming its penultimate episode when production was halted due to the pandemic and had yet to begin work on its hotly awaited series finale. Legacies is essentially in the same boat as it had aired every completed episode and their remaining episodes also have uncompleted effects.

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HOBBS & SHAW Sequel Is Indeed In Development, According To Dwayne Johnson

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Despite not quite living up to its mothership franchise, Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw was still mostly well-received by audiences, revving its way all the way to a $760.4 million worldwide haul ($173.9M domestic; $585.1M foreign) on an estimated $200 million production budget. 

The David Leitch-directed action blockbuster, which starred Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham in the titular roles, finished its summer box office run as the fourth-highest grossing movie in the entire Fast & Furious franchise and the eleventh-highest grossing film of 2019.

While the film did more or less set up a sequel (well, multiple sequels), it wasn’t necessarily a sure thing as Universal seemed to shift its attention back over to the primary series of films, ramping up promotions for the upcoming Fast & Furious 9 rather than offering any sort of update on whether Luke Hobbs & Deckard Shaw would ride again anytime soon.

Now, with a vast majority of the film industry shut down for the foreseeable future due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has offered a promising update during a recent Instagram Live session. When asked, he confirms to fans that the sequel is indeed in development, but it seems as though it may be a little further out than anticipated. 

We are developing now the next film, the next [Hobbs & Shaw] movie, and I’m pretty excited about it… Just gotta figure out the creative right now, and the direction we’re going to go.

While Johnson’s comments do seem to indicate the sequel may have a new writer and possibly a new director, it’s probably too early to say whether either will actually come to fruition. Considering Chris Morgan’s ties to molding the entire franchise, it’s highly probable he’ll be back in some capacity. David Leitch has Undying Love, The Division and maybe Deadpool 3 on his docket for this year and beyond, so there is a possibility he may not return to helm the next installment, but again, it’s too early to say.

Ever since hulking lawman Hobbs (Johnson), a loyal agent of America’s Diplomatic Security Service, and lawless outcast Shaw (Statham), a former British military elite operative, first faced off in 2015’s Furious 7, the duo have swapped smack talk and body blows as they’ve tried to take each other down.

But when cyber-genetically enhanced anarchist Brixton (Idris Elba) gains control of an insidious bio-threat that could alter humanity forever — and bests a brilliant and fearless rogue MI6 agent (The Crown’s Vanessa Kirby), who just happens to be Shaw’s sister — these two sworn enemies will have to partner up to bring down the only guy who might be badder than themselves.



Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw features:
Director: David Leitch
Dwayne Johnson as Luke Hobbs
Jason Statham as Deckard Shaw
Idris Elba as Brixton Lore
Vanessa Kirby as Hattie Shaw
Eiza González as Madam M
Cliff Curtis as Jonah Hobbs
Helen Mirren as Magdalene “Queenie” Shaw
Eddie Marsan as Professor Andreiko
Roman Reigns as Mateo Hobbs
Josh Mauga as Timo Hobbs
John Tui as Kal Hobbs
Lori Pelenise Tuisano as Sefina Hobbs
Lyon Beckwith as Hobbs’ cousin
Westley LeClay as Hobbs’ cousin
Pingi Moli as Hobbs’ cousin
Eliana Sua as Sam Hobbs
Rob Delaney as Agent Loeb
David Leitch as Eteon helicopter pilot
Nathan Jones as Russian fighter pilot
Ryan Reynolds as Locke
Kevin Hart as Dinkley

Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw is now available on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD!

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TRANSFORMERS Director Michael Bay Signs Multiyear Film And TV Deal With Sony Pictures

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Michael Bay (Transformers, 6 Underground) will soon be bringing his explosive directorial style to Sony Pictures.

The divisive filmmaker has signed a multiyear first look deal with the studio to produce both film and TV projects. Deadline’s report doesn’t mention whether he would also direct, but we assume it’s a strong possibility.

Bay made his directorial debut, Bad Boys, with Sony before returning to helm the sequel. His next project for the studio will be ensemble drama Black Five from a script by Top Gun: Maverick‘s Ehren Kruger.

No word on what Bay and Sony have lined up for the small screen, but he is currently serving as executive producer on Amazon’s Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan and USA Network’s The Purge.

Could we see Bay get involved with any of Sony’s planned Spider-Man movies? His films do tend to rake in the cash, so there’s nothing to say the studio wouldn’t at least consider handing him the reigns of one of the multiple Spidey spinoffs currently in the early stages of development. That’s pure speculation, of course.

Assuming you’re a Michael Bay fan (they are out there!), what sort of projects would you like to see him tackle for Sony Pictures? Let us know in the comments section below.

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